School Board opts to continue outsourcing custodial services

Published: Thursday, July 18, 2013 at 6:30 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, July 18, 2013 at 6:30 p.m.

The Marion County School Board gave the district the go-ahead to continue outsourcing custodial services at schools to save money during penny-pinching times.

But the new plan will give the district better oversight of the contracted cleaning companies to make sure that schools are being cleaned properly.

It would do that by upgrading the job description of the day custodians to plant managers, who would inspect the work of the nighttime cleaning crews and also do minor maintenance around the school.

That would save between 18 percent and 50 percent of the cost of doing that work in-house.

Early this year, the board had debated cost savings versus cleanliness.

Tired of hearing complaints from school administrators about poor service at some schools that use outside cleaning crews, School Board Chairman Ron Crawford wanted to stop outsourcing, even though it saves the district hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Currently about one-third of the 51 schools use outsource custodial services. School Board member Nancy Stacy was adamant the cost-savings could mean hiring back more teachers.

At a recent School Board meeting, Stacy suggested a compromise. Instead of the cleaning service providing the day-time custodian, let the district pay for that position and the employee could inspect the work of the night crew.

The district's facilities department ran with the idea and expanded the role even further, creating a plant manager position.

"Now we have the checks and balances we need," Stacy said.

The new plan seemed to be the compromise the district was looking for. The board reached a consensus at Thursday's work session and directed administrators to implement the plan. The board will still have to vote on each contract at a School Board meeting.

With any new contract with a cleaning vendor, the district is planning to restructure the daytime custodian's job description.

Tommy Crosby, executive director of operations and facilities, noted that the day-time custodians, who are paid about $24,000 annually, would be increased to $36,000 as plant managers.

The custodians spend much of the day in the cafeteria, but also clean bathrooms and other parts of the school after spills and accidents.

For a salary of $36,000, the plant manager will be responsible for inspecting the contracted cleaning crew's night work and report any problems to the company.

The plant manager will also be responsible for completing all minor maintenance projects at the school and performing minor custodial duties around the school during the day.

The district's food service, which is financed mainly through the National School Lunch Program, will hire a part-time custodian to help with cafeteria cleanup needs.

Having the plant manager do minor maintenance projects at the school is expected to save the district money. Currently, the district's maintenance department sends out workers to each school about once per week to do minor repairs.

The new plan will also help the district maintenance department, which has had a workforce reduction of 25 percent since the recession started in 2007.

The first school likely to be outsourced under the new plan will be Legacy Elementary, which opens for the first time on Aug. 19.

At Legacy alone, the district will save $47,000 by outsourcing custodial services, including the addition of a plant manager.

The cost of custodial services would be $155,000 if the district did it in-house, but $108,000 if it was outsourced, Crosby said. The board will vote on that contract on Tuesday.

The next three elementary schools that will have its custodial services bid out are Oakcrest, Anthony and Dr. N.H. Jones. The new plan will save the district about $55,000 at Oakcrest, $35,000 at Dr. N.H. Jones and $18,000 at Anthony.

<p>The Marion County School Board gave the district the go-ahead to continue outsourcing custodial services at schools to save money during penny-pinching times.</p><p>But the new plan will give the district better oversight of the contracted cleaning companies to make sure that schools are being cleaned properly.</p><p>It would do that by upgrading the job description of the day custodians to plant managers, who would inspect the work of the nighttime cleaning crews and also do minor maintenance around the school.</p><p>That would save between 18 percent and 50 percent of the cost of doing that work in-house.</p><p>Early this year, the board had debated cost savings versus cleanliness.</p><p>Tired of hearing complaints from school administrators about poor service at some schools that use outside cleaning crews, School Board Chairman Ron Crawford wanted to stop outsourcing, even though it saves the district hundreds of thousands of dollars.</p><p>Currently about one-third of the 51 schools use outsource custodial services. School Board member Nancy Stacy was adamant the cost-savings could mean hiring back more teachers.</p><p>At a recent School Board meeting, Stacy suggested a compromise. Instead of the cleaning service providing the day-time custodian, let the district pay for that position and the employee could inspect the work of the night crew.</p><p>The district's facilities department ran with the idea and expanded the role even further, creating a plant manager position.</p><p>"Now we have the checks and balances we need," Stacy said.</p><p>The new plan seemed to be the compromise the district was looking for. The board reached a consensus at Thursday's work session and directed administrators to implement the plan. The board will still have to vote on each contract at a School Board meeting.</p><p>With any new contract with a cleaning vendor, the district is planning to restructure the daytime custodian's job description.</p><p>Tommy Crosby, executive director of operations and facilities, noted that the day-time custodians, who are paid about $24,000 annually, would be increased to $36,000 as plant managers.</p><p>The custodians spend much of the day in the cafeteria, but also clean bathrooms and other parts of the school after spills and accidents.</p><p>For a salary of $36,000, the plant manager will be responsible for inspecting the contracted cleaning crew's night work and report any problems to the company.</p><p>The plant manager will also be responsible for completing all minor maintenance projects at the school and performing minor custodial duties around the school during the day.</p><p>The district's food service, which is financed mainly through the National School Lunch Program, will hire a part-time custodian to help with cafeteria cleanup needs.</p><p>Having the plant manager do minor maintenance projects at the school is expected to save the district money. Currently, the district's maintenance department sends out workers to each school about once per week to do minor repairs.</p><p>The new plan will also help the district maintenance department, which has had a workforce reduction of 25 percent since the recession started in 2007.</p><p>The first school likely to be outsourced under the new plan will be Legacy Elementary, which opens for the first time on Aug. 19.</p><p>At Legacy alone, the district will save $47,000 by outsourcing custodial services, including the addition of a plant manager.</p><p>The cost of custodial services would be $155,000 if the district did it in-house, but $108,000 if it was outsourced, Crosby said. The board will vote on that contract on Tuesday.</p><p>The next three elementary schools that will have its custodial services bid out are Oakcrest, Anthony and Dr. N.H. Jones. The new plan will save the district about $55,000 at Oakcrest, $35,000 at Dr. N.H. Jones and $18,000 at Anthony.</p><p><i>Contact Joe Callahan at 867-4113 or joe.callahan@starbanner.com. Follow him Twitter @JoeOcalaNews.</i></p>